Commercially-pure zirconium is alloyed and dealloyed repeatedly with hydrogen at 810 C, thereby cyclically triggering phase transformations between hydrogen-free a-Zr and hydrogen-alloyed b-Zr. Under an externally applied tensile stress, the internal mismatch stresses produced by the a-b transformations are biased, resulting in the accumulation of strain increments after each chemical cycle in ...

Rapid continuous thermal control of chemical reactions such as those for chemical vapor deposition (CVD) growth of nanotubes and nanowires cannot be studied using traditional reactors such as tube furnaces, which have large thermal masses. We present the design, modeling, and verification of a simple, low-cost reactor based on resistive heating of a suspended silicon platform. This system achie...

Complex metal-organic frameworks used as precursors allow design and construction of various nanostructured functional materials which might not be accessible by other methods. Here, we develop a sequential chemical etching and sulfurization strategy to prepare well-defined double-shelled zinc-cobalt sulfide (Zn-Co-S) rhombic dodecahedral cages (RDCs). Yolk-shelled zinc/cobalt-based zeolitic im...

This manuscript describes a new method to generate purely diffusive chemical gradients that can be modified in time. The device is simple in its design and easy to use, which makes it amenable to study biological processes that involve static or dynamic chemical gradients such as chemotaxis. We describe the theory underlying the convection-free gradient generator, illustrate the design to imple...

The anaerobic decomposition of plant biomass is an important aspect of global organic carbon cycling. While the anaerobic metabolism of cellulose and hemicelluloses to methane and carbon dioxide are well-understood, evidence for the initial stages of lignin decomposition is fragmentary. The objective of this study was to look for evidence of chemical transformations of lignin in woody tissues [...

We demonstrate a template-free synthetic approach for the preparation of a highly conductive Cu/Cu(2)O nanocomposite electrode by a chemical reduction process. Cu(2)O octahedra were prepared through chemical dehydrogenation of as-synthesized Cu(OH)(2) nanowire precursors. To provide a sufficiently electron-conducting network, the Cu(2)O particles were transformed into Cu/Cu(2)O nanocomposites b...

Lithium-and-manganese-rich (LMR) cathode materials have been regarded as very promising for lithium (Li)-ion battery applications. However, their practical application is still limited by several barriers such as their limited electrochemical stability and rate capability. In this work, we present recent progress on the understanding of structural and compositional evolution of LMR cathode mate...

Lithium solid-state batteries (SSBs) are a promising technology for electrochemical energy storage systems. So far, the performance of SSBs mainly governed by electro-chemo-mechanical properties diverse solid/solid interfaces and their evolution upon cycling. However, as these buried in battery stack, comprehensive understanding remains challenge. Here, we thus provide some advances methodologi...